Hanoi | Halong Bay

Beautiful, isn't it? Halong Bay was a revelation. It was well-worth the 6-hour trip. Once we got our first glimpse of the emerald sea and the first peaks, my mood lifted a whole lot.

Our ship was called Yen Ngoc. Haha. That little gem of a fact was told to us again and again by our very cool, very sweet tour guide. All of us "one-dayers" were grouped into one side and asked to enter our boat, and the first thing we did was eat. Haha. We ate a hearty, homemade lunch with fresh seafood and just general nomnomness. And then we just cruised, taking hundreds of photos along the way. We only left our boat twice - once to experience a boat ride with the locals, and once to check out the large caves we had to walk up the mountain for. It was a short trip actually, but next time, Leon and I are considering staying overnight on the ship.

Oh, have I mentioned that we had a flight back to Danang in a place four hours away from Halong Bay? I should have probably started with that. Anyways, because of laser-precision transport exchanges, and the most amazing tour guide ever who called us a cab to go to the middle of nowhere, we made it with time to spare! That was the most stressful experience of my life.